Statement from Leader Currie Dixon on the Unidentified Object Shot Down Over the Yukon

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                  February 12, 2023

“First, I need to thank those who tracked and shot down the unidentified object over the Yukon on Saturday. This is a reminder that there are those in our armed forces and our friends with the North American Aerospace Defense Command who are standing on guard and protecting Yukoners and Canadians at all times.

“With this incident, and Friday’s incident involving our Alaskan neighbours, this reaffirms the need to modernize our North Warning System, and for a fully built-out Canadian Armed Forces base in the Yukon. The topic of Arctic Sovereignty has faded away on the national scale in recent years, and these two incidents should serve as a wake-up call.

“After the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year, I penned an Op-Ed published in the Ottawa Citizen, and with local media. It laid out the case for the federal government to take seriously the risks and vulnerabilities of our North and Canada’s inadequate military preparedness.

“Given what has happened over the past two days, and with the Prime Minister scheduled to visit the Yukon, I call on the Premier of the Yukon to bring this matter to the attention of the Prime Minister, and affirm the Yukon’s support to shore up our Northern defense systems.”

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